Electric lighting fixture



April 18, 1944-. H C. K1N@ 2,347,113

ELECTRIC LIGHTING FIXTURE Filed DEC. 24, 1942 Patented Apr. 18,1944 l 2,347,113'

2,347,113 v ELECTRIC LIGHTING Fm'rUaE Harry C. King, Cincinnati, Ohio,

Brite Lighting, Inc., tion oi' Missouri Application December 24, 1942, Serial No. 469,981

4 Claims. (Cl. 248-343) asslgnor to Day- St. Louis, Mo., a corpora- This invention relates to electric lighting ixtures, particularly continuous overhead fluorescent lighting fixtures of the kind having a continuous wiring housing along the top thereof and that is supported by a hanger engageable with said housing. The invention has for its principal object to combine a separable supplemental wiring housing with the usual wiring housing; to provide each of said housings with portions mutually adapted for engagement by the iixture hanger, whereby said housings may be used together, or the usual housing used alone, with said hanger; to provide access to said supplemental housing through the top thereof; and to provide a transverse strut member for said supplemental housing. The invention consists in the fixture and the construction, combinations and arrangements of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawing, which forms part of this specification and wherein like symbols refer to like parts Wherever they occur,

Fig. 1 is a -vertical cross-sectional view of a continuous overhead iiuorescent lighting fixture embodying my invention,

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary side elevational view of said iixture,

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary central longitudinal section on the line 3-3 in Fig. 1; and

Fig. -4 is a perspective view of the channelshaped strut member for the supplemental wiring housing.

In the accompanying drawing, my invention is shown embodied in a continuous overhead fluorescent lighting xture of the kind shown in Biller Patent No. 2,297,869 wherein the wiring,

ballast and other auxiliaries (not shown) of the lamp circuit are enclosed in a continuous housing A of substantially inverted channel-shaped section having outstanding ribs or ledges I along opposite sides thereof, and the reflector 2, lamps 3 and lampholders 3a are sustained by a bridge pltae 4 seated in the bottom of said housing. The iixture is suspended from the ceiling at points spaced apart along the length thereof by means of suspension supports. Each of the suspension supports comprises an upright pipe 5 that is removably secured by nuts 6 to one end ci' a hanger plate 'l whose other end is secured to the ceiling 8 by means of a vertical screw or Ibolt 9. The hanger plate 'I is concealed in a cup-shaped canopy l0, which is sleeved on the hanger pipe 5 and is held in abutting relation to the ceiling 8 by means of a set screw l l. Fixed to the lower end of the -hanger pipe 5 is a xture holder or support B comprising two sections l2 and I3, respectively, that are separable in directions crosswise of the iixture. The section i2 o1' the fixture support B comprises a substantially inverted channel-shaped body portion having a horizontal web i4, a relatively shallow depending side iiange l5 with a horizontally elongated slot i6 extended therethrough, and a relatively deep depending iiange l1 that terminates in an inwardly extending ilange or hook i8. The lower end of the hanger pipe 5 extends downwardly through the web portion I4 of the section i2, which is removably secured to said pipe by nuts 20 threaded thereon. Thev other or opposite section i3 of the support or holder B comprises a vertically disposed portion 22 that is disposed alongside of the depending shallow side flange l5 of the section l2 in lapping relation to the lower marginal portion of said shallow ange and has a tongue 23 at its upper end that extends inwardly through the slot i8 in said shallow side flange and thence upwardly alongside the inner face thereof. The holder section i3, like the section l2, terminates at its lower end in an inwardly extending iiange or hook 2li that extends beneath the overhanging rib or ledge along the adjacent side of the wiring housing. The slotandtongue connection I6, 23 between the two sections l2 and i3 oi the fixture holder or support serves to prevent accidental disengagement of said sections. The two sections, however, may :be readily disengaged by swinging the section i3 upwardly into a position that will permit the tongue 23 thereof to be withdrawn outwardly through the slot i6 in the section i2. The two sections of the holder B are drawn together to rigidly clamp the xture therebetween by means of a clamping screw 25 that extends through a horizontal opening provided therefor in the vertical portion 22 oi.' the section i3 and is threaded through a horizontal opening provided therefor in the deep side ange li of the section l2.

According to the present invention, the hereinbefore described lighting fixture is provided with a supplemental wiring housing or channel C, which seats on and is separably secured by screws 26 flatwise to the top of the main or usual wiring housing A of said xture. The supplemental wiring channel C has outstanding longitudinal ribs or shoulders la on opposite sides thereof of substantially the saine size and shape as the outstanding ledges or ribs i of the main housing A, whereby the outstanding ribs of each of said housings and the hooks i8, 2li oi the fixture holder or support B are mutually adapted for engagement by said support. Thus, the housings A and C may. be used together and the holder B clamped to the upper housing C to support the iixture, or the housing A may be used alone and said holder clamped thereto to support said nxture. Access may be had to the interior of the supplemental housing C through a central longitudinal opening 2l in the top wall thereof. the sides oi said opening being defined by anges 28 depending from said top wall. A channel shaped member 29 is disposed crosswise ci the opening 21 in the top of the supplemental wiring housing C and is supported by the clamp screw vided by attaching the supplemental wiring nous ing C to the usual wiring housing A of the xture and clamping the iixture support B to housing C instead of the housing A, the proper nxture anemia b ment with the ribs of said supplemental housing when said main and supplemental housings are used together and are adapted for engagement with the ribs oi' said main housing when said supplemental housing is dispensed with, said support including screw means ior drawing the depending portions thereof towards each other into clamping engagement with ribs ci seid housings, said supplemental housing having an opening in the top thereof, and a strut member disposed in and extending from side to side of said open ing and supported by said screw means.

2. A continuous overhead type electric lighting iixture comprising a longitudinal wiring housing having an access opening in the top thereof and longitudinal outstanding ribs along the sides thereof, and a suspension support for said nxture comprising spaced clamrp elements with hooks adapted for engagement with said ribs, a screwl cooperating with said clamp elements for drawing the same toward one another to retain the hooks thereof beneath said ribs, and a strut member located in and extending from side to side of the access opening in said housing and supported by said screw.

3. An overhead type electric lighting xture comprising a wiring housing having 'an access height being obtained merelyby shortening the i hanger pipe S5. Access may be had to the supplemental housing through the open top thereof for installing and inserting the wires therein; and knockouts 3d may be provided in the side walls of said housing to provide side outlets for take-oil wires. The strut member `259 stiiens and strengthens the open-top supplemental housing C against the clamping action of the holder B, and the clamping screw 25 of said holder serves as a support for said strut member.

Obviously, numerous changes may be mede without departing from the invention and I do not wish to be limited to thek precise construction shown.

What vI claim is:

1. A continuous overhead type electric light ing iixture comprising a suspension support, a main longitudinal wiring housing and a supplemental longitudinal wiring housing seated on top of said main housing and separably secured thereto, each of said housings 'having outstanding ribs on opposite sides thereof of substantially identical size and shape, said support having depending portions that are adapted for engageopening in the top thereof, a suspension support for said housing having portions disposed on opposite sides of said housing, said support including screw means for drawing said portions into clamping engagement with the sides of said hous ing, and a strut member disposed in and extending from side to side of said opening and supported by said screw means.

4. A continuous overhead type electric lighting xture comprising a self-contained longitudinal lower wiring housing having a closed top, a self-contained longitudinal upper wiring housing having a, closed bottom seated on said closed top of said lower housing and separably secured thereto, each of said housings having undercut side portions of substantially identical size and shape, and a suspension support for said housing 

